Health People...Yogurt?

[Meadowlark]

We have made the switch from regular to Greek. But, today I looked on the back of our Aldi vanilla Greek yogurt and saw a whopping 25 grams of sugar. Then, I tasted it and it tasted very sweet. No wonder my kids gobbled it down! Although I'm not thrilled about the sugar, I am grateful they're eating Greek rather painlessly.

 

But...Is there another brand or health consideration I should follow? Something that tastes great but is lower in sugar? Should I be buying organic? I

[TwoEdgedSword]

We don't buy any flavored yogurts. We just buy plain and I add raw honey or maple syrup for the kids and stevia for me.

You can also blend in blueberries and strawberries. Greek will be strong if it's plain, but if you are doing it for the protein, it's worth it.

[Cakes]

I agree with 2KnowWisdom, that is precisely what I was going to say. Also yes, buy organic! 

[6packofun]

Just FYI, plain, nonfat Greek yogurt has 4-7g of natural sugar in a 5-6oz. serving.  Add just a tsp of honey and that's 5-6 more grams.  So anything under 20g is pretty good, IMO. 

 

Here are some good ones (I like Fage):  http://www.fitnessmagazine.com/recipes/food-awards/2013-food-awards-best-greek-yogurt/

[bolt.]

I buy little cups for a little more money, so that the serving is controlled. Sugars are 10 to 12g per serving cup. I refuse to go higher.

 

I got myself and kids on to Greek by starting with lemon as the flavour. You expect it to be sour, so the mild sourness of the yogurt with the sweet-and-sour of the lemon flavour is really quite nice.

[Tanaqui]

Milk is, by its nature, high in sugar. Yogurt has less sugar than milk (because the bacteria that make it yogurt eat up the sugars), but it's still never gonna be sugar-free. Then, when you buy flavored yogurt, it's a given that they'll add sugar to it.

 

If you don't want added sugar, buy plain yogurt or plain Greek yogurt and add your own flavorings at home.

 

Organic or not won't do a thing about the sugar count.

[regentrude]

You can simply buy plain Greek yoghurt and flavor it yourself by adding fruit or maple syrup - you would be in control of the amount of sugar.

[gardenmom5]

I buy costco's kirkland brand greek yogurt.  it is nonfat, high protien, and doen'st have the whopping amounts of sugar.  I add my own fresh/frozen fruit.  

[lineinthesand9]

A few years ago, we started making our own Greek-style yogurt at home, and we greatly prefer the taste/texture of it over store-bought.  Easy recipe -- takes a crock-pot, a candy thermometer, a straining cloth, one gallon of milk, a cup of Fage plain yogurt (for starter), and a 1/4 cup of dry milk.  There are recipes all over the internet if you google "homemade crockpot greek yogurt."  Makes a big batch for less pennies, and (as others have posted), we control the sweetener choice and amount.  Our kiddos' sweetener of choice is mashed bananas and just a sprinkle of powdered sugar! :001_smile:   

[Amira]

This may not be the most popular option, but we only eat plain yogurt because we think of it as something savory/tart rather than something sweet. I personally don't think strained yogurt is that much healthier than unstrained either. There are advantages to both types.

 

We eat about 6 liters of yogurt a week and don't strain it.

[Night Elf]

I don't know about Greek yogurt but there are only 9g of sugar in the strawberry 6 oz. Dannon Light & Fit I buy.

[redsquirrel]

I buy plain yogurt of either greek or ... non greek (?) variety. I like both and they both have their charms.  But if I need it sweetened we add a teaspoon or two of jam, honey or maple syrup. There is so much sugar in the store bought stuff that my mom always called it 'yogurt candy'.

[ScoutTN]

We eat full fat yogurt, either organic or homemade from local milk. We do plain and add fruit or nuts or maple syrup or whatever. It is very rich and satisfying. More filling than nonfat or lowfat, so we eat less.

[regentrude]

We eat full fat yogurt, either organic or homemade from local milk. We do plain and add fruit or nuts or maple syrup or whatever. It is very rich and satisfying. More filling than nonfat or lowfat, so we eat less.

 

A tip for those, who, like us, only have access to fat free Greek yoghurt: adding a teaspoon of heavy cream to a serving restores the fat content to its normal level and makes it oh so much more tasty and satisfying :-)

(It is sad what is done to food in this country...)

 

[redsquirrel]

I can't really tell the difference between full fat and fat free greek style yogurt that I buy from the store. I just can't.

 

I make my own yogurt from 100% jersey cow milk that I get raw ( I scald it for yogurt) and with that I CAN tell the difference. My kids complain that it is too rich, lol. The like the taste but it is so filling they can't eat very much.

[Carrie12345]

Our local grocery store has a HUGE selection of "standard" yogurts, but only two brands of full-fat plain, and my family only likes the texture of one of them (store brand) so that's what we went with for years. The kids usually throw some fruit or granola in there (or even raw quick oats, which I think is very strange.)

 

The store recently added local farm products, so now we have easy access to plain, local yogurt, though the kids prefer when I grab their lemon flavored.

 

I don't bother to worry about natural sugars. That may or may not be a controversial stance, lol, but it's what works for us.  Real food often has sugars.  There is no benefit to choosing something smothered in *extra sugars.  If we didn't have access to "real" yogurt, I probably wouldn't buy any except as a dessert-like treat now and then.

 

ETA:  Or I'd probably keep experimenting with making my own.  My family hasn't been overly thrilled with my few attempts thus far.

[Angie in VA]

I buy costco's kirkland brand greek yogurt.  it is nonfat, high protien, and doen'st have the whopping amounts of sugar.  I add my own fresh/frozen fruit.  

 

This. 

 

This may not be the most popular option, but we only eat plain yogurt because we think of it as something savory/tart rather than something sweet. 

 

And this.

[6packofun]

I eat the Yoplait Greek Yogurt that is sold in 100 calorie containers. The sugar content on the Key Lime is 9g. I went to their website and looked up the sugar on their plain Greek Yogurt under the 100 calorie section of the site (which comes in a larger container). It is 6g. And a serving size is considered 3/4 of a cup. I sometimes eat plain yogurt (not Greek) and make my own parfaits. Truth be told, I do not like the taste of plain yogurt. I muster through it with the toppings. I am not sure if I've tried plain Greek and I only buy the yogurt that does not have toppings floating in it. I don't like the way they come in the store so I buy the vanilla and key lime which don't have chunks.

 

Yes, these contain sucralose (Splenda).  I'd rather have real sugar or sugar from added fruit than from an artificial sweetener.  

[Amira]

I don't like store-bought plain yogurt either.  Too bland. :)

[Stacia]

You could also try Siggi's Skyr Icelandic Yogurt: http://siggisdairy.com/products/

 

It's not really high in sugars & is very thick (if you like that). It is also much milder than Greek yogurt, imo. Love some of their flavors & then adding even more fruit &/or nuts in. Yum. (Around us, the grocery stores & Target carry Siggi's.)

[Laurie4b]

One of my very favorite things is plain yogurt with frozen blueberries or raspberries in it. So good! And it is a good substitute for ice cream for me.

[shukriyya]

You could also try Siggi's Skyr Icelandic Yogurt: http://siggisdairy.com/products/

 

It's not really high in sugars & is very thick (if you like that). It is also much milder than Greek yogurt, imo. Love some of their flavors & then adding even more fruit &/or nuts in. Yum. (Around us, the grocery stores & Target carry Siggi's.)

This is the brand I like. I buy the plain one which is extremely tart, one if the reasons I prefer it. http://siggisdairy.com/products/detail/skyr/plain/15/